Similarities and Differences Among the Major Western Religions

Similarities and Differences Among the Major Western Religions: Christianity, Islam, and Judaism.
Michael Forrest
REL 134: World Religious Traditions IIThe major religions of the Western world share similarities as a result of their shared heritage, but are also very different due to their divergence from that heritage. All three started with the same stories that are found in the Judaic Torah. Adam, Eve, Abraham, and Noah all exist in the culture of all of these religions. However, as time progressed people would come that would impact those around them and cause the course of religion to change. The result is the establishment of Christianity with the Bible and Islam with the Quran.

Approximately 5,000 years ago a group of people started a religion based on a single omnipotent deity. They started writing their stories and used them as their guide for religion and life. They called themselves the descendents of Eber, or Hebrews (Wikipedia). These people eventually found a home in the lands of Judea, hence the name of their religion, Judaism. Judaism spread through the Middle East where it would come into conflict with various cultures.

Around 2,000 years ago a man came out of the Jewish religion that was believed by some to be a prophet, and others as the Messiah, or Christ, of the Hebrew people. The man was Jesus of Nazareth, son of Joseph and Mary, and the stories of his life and the messages and lessons he gave became the foundation for a new religion. This religion was named after this man and is called Christianity. The tenets of Christianity are shared with Judaism, but include additional beliefs that separate it from Judaism including the concept of resurrection and the Trinity of Father, Son, and Holy Spirit (religioustolerance.com).

Another group followed the teachings of another man, Muhammad. He proclaimed himself to be the last prophet of God, he provided many new tenets to his followers regarding the manner in which a person...

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

...WesternReligions
Human Services 130
Westernreligions, there are three main forms, there is Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. it is best to break them out individually and compare the three. Once this is done, each religion is easier to understand you can find newrespect for each though understanding is achieved.
The main focal point of any religious aspect is the understanding of God. A breakdown of each so that they are easier to understand is as follows:
Judaism: God is omnipotent, or meaning “all powerful” or of unlimited power. God is omniscient, or meaning to have the capacity to know everything infinitely, “all knowing.” In Judaism, God is the creator of everything.
Christianity: God is everything, the creator of everything, and ruler of everything. The religion is based on the “trinity,” or the belief of the father, the son, and the Holy Ghost.
Islam: The Islamic religion calls their God, deity, or higher power “Allah,” and to this religion, Allah is the highest power, and there is nothing that is before Allah.
There are differences we can see with the above three that are listed. I believe a higher power is a higher power. All on your own you decide what yours is.. As you can see, each religion sees their higher power as their ruler, creator of all mankind, and there is no sort of a higher power than...

...technology, there was religion. This was part of the pre-modern times. Depending upon what part of the world you are from depends on what type of religion you are likely to encounter. This also determines the likelihood of what religion you may have grown up with. Your religion and your background helps in determining what values you may have. These believe and values vary in different religions. Some may learn some parts of these religions from movies or hearsay. Sometimes as we get older it is hard to determine what we believe as we do.
Before 500 BC there were three westernreligions. They started very similar in the pre-modern times. When you look into the religion of Islam, the studies not only consist of the Qur'an but also the Bible. There are similarities as well as differences amongst these two religions. Many with the Muslims community that have converted from a Christian background before turning to Islam as their spiritual guidance. There are many comparisons as well as differences amongst these two religions.
Judaism, one of the westernreligions compares closely with the religions of Christianity and Islam. The bible is used in the religious studies although preferred in the original Hebrew text. Amongst these three...

...What is religion? Each person’s definition of religion is different. Each person’s faith is different. This is a question that has been asked for centuries, and regardless of the answer given there is no right or wrong answer. However, according to Emile Durkheim in ;Kenneth D. Allan (2 November 2005). Explorations in Classical Sociological Theory: Seeing the Social World. Pine Forge Press. p. 115. religion is "a unified system of beliefs and practices relative to sacred things, that is to say, things set apart and forbidden beliefs and practices which unite into one single moral community called a Church all those who adhere to them. Religion is generally born out of culture where members of the culture create a system of beliefs and values. They also establish symbols that represent the belief structure and hold special meaning for believers.
There are five majorreligions of the world these are: Christianity, Judaism, Islam, Hinduism and Buddhism. Religions can be divided geographically. The content of this essay will focus on Judaism and Islam. This section will begin by the writer giving a brief overview of both religions. Judaism is a one of the oldest religions known to people. Judaism was born about 4000 years ago. Many famous people have been Jewish such as Moses, Jesus, Mahler, Marx, Freud, and Einstein. The history of Jewish people...

...﻿
Similarities and Differencesamong Family Therapies
Alberto Flores, Lesli Jo Earley, Ramona Figueroa
Colorado Technical University
Professor Danielle La Ha
Abstract
Every family has experienced at some point in their lives major problems that have caused arguments among their family members. In the world of counseling these are normal behaviors when the family is able to work effectively to overcome their issues. When the problem begins is when the family is not able to overcome those issues and they affect the family’s well-being. In searching for a way to help those families with their issues, mental health professionals have developed different therapies that can be used depending on the issues of the family. Some of these therapies are Strategic Family therapy, Structural Family therapy, Bowens Family therapy, and the Experiential Family therapy.
Similarities and Differencesamong Family Therapies
Strategic Family Therapy
The strategic family model is a family-based intervention that focuses in providing treatment for children and adolescents. This therapy assumes that adaptive family interactions can play key factors on preventing children of the exposure of maladaptive behaviors but at the same time, negative interactions of the family with their children can contribute to the development of problematic behaviors (Szapocznik,...

...Many people today still believe that Christianity and Judaism are both the same religion. This is not so, despite the fact that they both share certain similarities; Christianity and Judaism are both different religions. It is my pleasure to shed some light on the differences and similarities of both religions' views on salvation. In this research I will first define salvation in its literal form. Secondly, I will take a closer look into the history and development of both religions and shed further light on how they differ. Finally, I will go on to further compare and contrast both religions and show where they differ and where they are alike. At the end of this research, people will have a greater understanding of both Christianity and Judaism and be able to identify how different they both are.
According to Matt Slick, "Salvation is being saved from the righteous judgment of God upon the sinner." Most people in the world believe that salvation means being saved from the devil or from themselves, but this is not a fact. Your salvation depends on the judgment God has on you. All who sin against God falls under his judgment, this judgment is known as damnation, and this is where God condemns to eternal hell anyone who has offended him by breaking his law. Matt Slick went further to say, "This does not mean that God is unfair. It shows that God is holy. God must...

...Eastern and WesternReligions: Differences and Similarities
On this vast planet with billions of people occupying its space, we can see that people have many differences, yet we are similar at our core. People always strive to find why who put us on this Earth and and we have gone to many lengths to find those answers. Religion has answered many of those particular questions for use. People feel at peace knowing that through religion we have found purpose in life and death. Much like people, religion is very different. There is no one-core religion for all people on Earth and Religion is very dependent on many things, environment and cosmic changes to add a few. So, we divide Earths religions (in regards to majorreligions) as Eastern and Western. Although water separates the east and the west we can see that there are similarities between them, yet because of religions adapting and evolving there are many differences in how they came to be.
Eastern religions (Buddhism, Hinduism, Taoism, Confucianism, and Shinto) have originated long before westernreligions (Judaism, Christianity, and Islam) have been able to stick around today. As stated in World Religions textbook pg. 16...

...﻿
Contemporary Issues in WesternReligions
When it comes to the contemporary issues in westernreligions it starts off with Christianity, Judaism, and Islam. These three religions all believe in one God, which makes them similar to one another. They all started in the Middle East and have a different way of praising their God. Judaism religion calls their God Yeshua and Islam call their God Allah. Even though they all believe in one God their studies and how they view life is what makes each religion stand out. In this paper it will discuss the historical connections and theological similarities, and the contemporary issues between all three of them.
Historical Connections and Theological Similarities
Three of the world's majorreligions are the monotheistic traditions of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam were created in the Middle East and are indistinguishably accompanying to one another. In 2010 Michael Molloy clarifies that, “Christianity was developed from within the Jewish tradition, and Islam was established from both Christianity and Judaism.” Although there have been dissimilarities between the three religions, there is a magnificent traditional intersection between Jews, Christians, and Muslims that appropriated in Islamic Europe and other places over...

...The MajorReligions Judaism, Christianity and Islamic
Humanities 101
August 28, 2010
Strayer University
The majorreligions in the world are Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. Judaism,
Christianity, and Islam are monotheistic religions, namely they believe that there is only one
God. All three religions believe that this God is the origin and source of all that exists. God
cares about the entire creation and desires the well-being of all. God is just and has provided
basic rules for our guidance so that we may be good and righteous, according to God's intention.
All the majorreligions of the world have cities that hold special significance to their religion. It
may be the home of a religious leader, the birthplace of their god, or the location of an important
Temple or shrine. Many of these holy cities are important to more than one religion, which is a
little more proof that we're all more alike than we are different. All three religions acknowledge
that Moses was a prophet of God. The prophets of Israel and Judah are one of the most amazing
groups of individuals in all history. The Islamic faith eagerly awaits the return of the Prophet
Jesus born by a miracle of God without a father. The Prophet Mohammed's words give an
account of the signs that will precede the coming of...